The Sonoita Creek riparian forest in southern Arizona, United States, surrounded by rugged high desert terrain
Desert riparian is a North American desert vegetation type (or biome) occurring in the bottoms of valleys, canyons, and other watercourses that have water at or near the surface most of the year.[1] The visual character is of large, lush, perennial green trees surrounded by dry desert vegetation and soil coloration.[1] The area may be in a patch surrounding a spring such as an oasis, or in a strand following the course of water flow, such as a bosque.[1] The soil in this biome is typically moist and ranges from rocky and sandy to silty alluvium.[2] This biome has seasonal variation, with hot, dry summers and cool, moist winters.[2] Precipitation mostly occurs during the winter, and ranges from 8 to 25 cm each year.[2] It is contrasted with the desert dry wash vegetation type, in which water at or near the surface is lacking most of the year, such as arroyos.[1]
Bosque desert riparian woodland along the Rio Grande in New Mexico, United States
Over 80% of known desert wildlife species use desert riparian areas.[1] Common dominant species include Fremont cottonwood (Populus fremontii), Rio Grande cottonwood (P. deltoides wislizeni), velvet ash (Fraxinus velutina), arroyo willow (Salix lasiolepis), Goodding's willow (Salix gooddingii), red willow (Salix laevigata), California fan palm (Washingtonia filifera), and invasive species such as salt cedar (Tamarix ramosissima), giant reed (Arundo donax), and Russian olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia).[1] Salt cedar and Russian olive are particularly causing problems for this ecosystem because they are able to extract water more efficiently than native cottonwoods and willows, can quickly regrow from a ground-level stump if cut down, grows woody thorns up to 3 inches long, and produce fruits favored by birds.[1] Many of these noninvasive non-native species may also be found because springs and surface water areas in the desert often were old homesites where such species were intentionally planted, such as elm, black locust, and assorted fruit trees.[1]
The desert riparian plays a large role in the populations of wildlife that inhabit it. Several bird species live within the shrubs, including the American Dipper, Belted Kingfisher, Lesser Scaup, and Flycatchers, including the critically endangered southwest willow flycatcher.[3] The cover provided by the Riparian vegetation provides a suitable environment for the dispersal of birds.[2] Riparian forests store limiting nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphate, and plays an important role in nutrient cycling.The riparian vegetation decreases erosion and improves water quality by trapping pollutants.[2]
^ abcdefghPam MacKay, Mojave Desert Wildflowers, 2nd Ed., p. 20-21
^ abcdeFeller, Walter. "Desert Riparian". mojavedesert.net. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
^National Park Service. "Riparian Birds". www.nps.gov/. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
Desertriparian is a North American desert vegetation type (or biome) occurring in the bottoms of valleys, canyons, and other watercourses that have water...
forms desert arroyos, desert fan palm oases, freshwater marshes, brine lakes, desert washes, ephemeral and perennial streams, and desertriparian vegetation...
species of bat), and 32 reptiles inhabit the park's four life zones: desert, riparian, woodland, and coniferous forest. Zion National Park includes mountains...
periodic severe flooding events. Desert dry wash is contrasted with desertriparian vegetation, which occurs in desert canyons and drainages where there...
found in desertriparian habitats at spring-fed and stream-fed oases in the Colorado Desert and at a few scattered locations in the Mojave Desert. It is...
the Southwestern United States and Desert Region of California, consuming large amounts of groundwater in riparian and oases habitats. The balance and...
sandstone formations and the forks of the Virgin River create a wilderness divided into four ecosystems: desert, riparian, woodland, and coniferous forest....
areas have disappeared from the Arizona landscape. In the Sonoran Desert, riparian areas nourish cottonwood-willow forests, one of the rarest and most...
investigations have generally concluded that the primary human-caused impact to desertriparian ecosystems within the Colorado River Basin is the alteration of the...
freshwater marshes, and a few foothill perennial streams year round. desertriparian vegetation communities dominated by cottonwood, willow, and non-native...
flora adapted to aridity occur in lowland riparian areas, at springs, and in hanging gardens.: 3 The salt desert shrub is a plant community or vegetation...
The Gobi Desert (Mongolian: Говь, ᠭᠣᠪᠢ, /ˈɡoʊbi/; Chinese: 戈壁; pinyin: gēbì) is a large, cold desert and grassland region in northern China and southern...
the opening of a gate at Morelos Dam. The goal is to rejuvenate a desertriparian habitat which naturalist Aldo Leopold explored in 1922 and described...
It prefers open woodlands of warm, dry pinyon-juniper, juniper and desertriparian woods. Juniper titmice will sleep in cavities, dense foliage, or birdhouses...
such as the Paseo Del Bosque trail in Albuquerque, New Mexico. As a desertriparian forest, the middle Rio Grande bosque has a characteristic variety of...
well adapted and quite diverse. The conversion of productive drylands to desert conditions, known as desertification, can occur from a variety of causes...
The Central Asian riparian woodlands ecoregion (WWF ID: PA1311) is spread out across the deserts and plains of central Asia between the Aral Sea and the...
The desert cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii), also known as Audubon's cottontail, is a New World cottontail rabbit, and a member of the family Leporidae...
low spot of the Borrego Valley. Coyote Creek supports Desert bighorn sheep and a desertriparian zone. Coyote Creek is divided up into three zones Upper...
drawings, and symbols carved into stone. The Paria boasts a vibrant desertriparian habitat that is home to several sensitive and endangered species and...
topography, the area is home to numerous animal and plant species, from desertriparian to boreal forest communities. Everglades National Park† Florida 1979...
montane habitat or a desert habitat their body temperature would be 35 degrees Celsius, but if the male lizard was in a desertriparian habitat its body temperature...
The Arabian Desert (Arabic: ٱلصَّحْرَاء ٱلْعَرَبِيَّة) is a vast desert wilderness in West Asia that occupies almost the entire Arabian Peninsula with...
David; Preston, Mel; Leist, Amy (2016). "CANYON WRENS BREEDING IN DESERTRIPARIAN VEGETATION: FIRST RECORDS IN A NOVEL HABITAT". Western Birds. 47 (1):...
The desert kingsnake (Lampropeltis splendida) is a species of kingsnake native to Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico, United States. It is not venomous, colored...
above treeline. The riparian communities of the Great Basin desert cut across all elevations and life zones. In the Great Basin desert surface water is rapidly...
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